AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“I know.” I didn’t really like it either, but I needed her safe while I dealt with Asura. “But this is our best option.”
“I’d ask if you want backup,” Nathaniel said. “But…”
But he needed to be here to protect the girls.
“Thank you.” I stood from the table. I had demons to kill and a sorry excuse for a mother to find.
Nathaniel nodded. “Like you said, I owed you.”
I moved around the table to kiss Nova’s forehead and Sierra’s cheek. “Thank you,” I whispered. I knew if it weren’t for her, I’d still be fighting with Siren right now.
When I got back to Siren, she stood and flung her arms around my neck. “Please be careful.”
I held her tightly. “Text me a list of stuff you want, and I’ll have someone bring it to you tonight.” I pressed a quick kiss to her lips. “I’ll call you.”
Twenty-Six
Piper
I blinkedin the sunlight that flooded the room from floor-to-ceiling windows. It took me a second to remember where I was. The room was simple with plain walls, green carpet, and minimal furniture. The giant windows offered a view of a second-story deck.
It all came roaring back in a rush of memory. Sam’s mother, the demons, Nate and Sierra. Sam had left me with his brother while he went off searching for his mother alone.
I bolted upright in the twin-sized bed, tripped over the open suitcase of stuff that Thomas had dropped off for me last night, and finally made it to the bedroom door. I didn’t spare my surroundings a second glance as I rushed down the stairs and stopped dead in the living room. Or was it an office? Practically the whole first floor was open, no walls separating the different rooms.
A blanket was spread out on the floor behind a desk, and there was a baby lying on it with a stuffed bear. She looked up at me with a seriousness I would’ve never expected to see in someone so young.
“Good morning.” Sierra’s voice drew my attention away from the baby to where she sat in a desk chair. “Did you sleep well?”
I nodded.
The woman smiled. “You picked a good time to be a houseguest,” she said, slipping off the chair to pick up the baby. “Nova’s finally started sleeping through the night consistently.”
My heart squeezed in my chest as I watched Nova place her tiny head on Sierra’s shoulder. I’d never have that, the easy, unconditional love of a mother and daughter.
“Come on.” Sierra nodded toward the other half of the house. “Breakfast is just about ready.”
“I’m sorry for popping in on you unannounced,” I said as I followed Sierra to the dining room where she strapped Nova into a high chair.
“Don’t worry about it. This is what family is for.”
Had she just called me family? I shook off the comment, not willing to dig deeper into what Sierra thought I was to Sam that made me family.
“She’s beautiful.” I nodded toward Nova. “How old is she?”
“Just under three months, and we have a feeling she already understands just about everything we say.”
Nova reached out, and Sierra swiftly pulled her long red curls out of the girl’s reach, securing them in a ponytail before leaning in to kiss the top of her head.
“Morning,” Nate said, coming from the kitchen with a plate of pancakes and a jug of maple syrup. He was possibly the most attractive man I’d ever seen, with beautiful green eyes, messy blond hair, and for lack of a better term, the face of an angel. The top half of his gray button-down was undone, showing off a pendant of three interconnecting loops that hung halfway down his chest.
“Can I help with anything?” I asked, reminding myself not to admire Sam’s gorgeous brother.
Sierra shook her head. “Just sit down and tell us all about how you and Sam ended up together. He’s yet to mention having a girlfriend, and I’m dying to know how long he’s been keeping secrets from me.”
“I’m not his girlfriend,” I said automatically.
Nate rolled his eyes. “So you two are still at that stage.”
